Game-counter.



PATENTED OCT. 29. 1907.

E. G. HILLYER.

GAME COUNTER.

APPLICATION FILED 11.28, 1906.

-4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PATENTED 0013.29. 1907.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

PATBNTED OCT. 29. 1907.

v No 869,241.

E. G. H ILLYER.

GAME COUNTER. APPLICATION nun MAR. 28, 1906.

4 SEEETS-SHEET 3.

PATENTED OCT. 29,'1907,

E. C. HILLYER. GAME COUNTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAB. 28,1006.

4 BHEETSSKEET Q.

UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE.

GAME -GOUNTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 29, 1907 Application filed March 28,1906. satin No; 308.4123;

To all whom it may concern:

lie it known that I, EDGAR C. HILLYER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Raleigh, county oi Wake, State of North Carolina, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game-Counters; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appcrtains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to means for I recording or scoring the results of games and belongs to that class of devices which are commonly known as game countors.

The invention is particularly applicable to scoring in connection with the game of bridge whist, popularly called "bridge. It will be understood, however, that the invention may be employed in connection with the scoring for other games, be theycard or otherwise.

It is an object. of the invention to provide a device of the character described which shall be capable of scoring two sets of points, as for instance, the trick and honor points in the game oi bridge and an tomatically summing those points so that the total number oi points scored in both sets can be read at any time. I

It. is a further object ol' the invention to render the means whereby one of the sets of pomts is scored movable independently of the means for scoring the other set of points, so that the first mentioned means may be adjusted without disturbing .ihe second means. For instance, in the game of bridge. it is desirable to turn the means for scoring trick points to its zero position after the end of each game without disturbing the reading of the total score.

It is a further object of the invention to provide means for automatically indicating the difference of the total scores of opposing sides;

it is a further object of the invention to provide means for indicatingthe number of games played, and

It is a further object of the invention to provide means for bringing all scores to 0.

It has before been stated that the invention is particularly applicable to the scoring of points in the card game of bridge whist and as the invention. is illustrated in the drawings \nd des 'ibcd in the iollowing specilication in commotion with that game. a brief description of the manner in which points are scored in the game rcferrcd to will aid in'an understanding of the description oi the invention.

Bridge is played by oppdsing sides, each side keeping separate scores of the points made. There are two distinct; kinds of points, trick points and honor points, all of \rhich are scored in two or. multiples of two, there being no odd numbers. Thirty or more trick poiuts win a game and the first two out of three games win a rubber. At the end of a rubber the trick and honor points of each side are added together into two total scores, the difference between these total scores is the amount won. It is necessary, therefore,

1st. To score separately the trick points made by 5th. To provide for bringing the two trick scores to 0 at the end of each game without altering the reading of the total sc0res,and

6th. To provide for bringing all scores to 0 at the end of a rubber.

With this preliminary explanation, a description of the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention may now be entered upon.

Of these drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of the apparatus partly broken away to show underlying portions. Fig. 2 is a vertical radial section on the line Al of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view of one side of the casing. Fig. 4 is a radial section on the line C--D of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the "trick disk. Fig. 6 is a plan view ol the honor scoring and point total izing disk. Fig. 7 is a plan view of the net gain disk. Fig. 8 is a radial section on the line li -F of Fig. 7, showing the net gain disks of the, opposing sides'in section and their relatioirto each other. Fig. 9 is a plan view of a guiding disk, as will be hereinafterreferred to, and Fig. 10 is a radial section of the same on the line Gl of Fig. 9.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the appsrat us comprises a circular casing having top and bottom plates A and B with acircular side wall 0, the in terior of the casing being divided by a partition D parallel to the plates A and B. Upon each side oi the partition is arranged identical apparatus, although the relative arrangements oi the apparatus upon the two sides of the partitions are opposite to each other. Similar parts upon opposite sides of the partition are arranged upon opposite sides of a diametrical plane as indicated by thaline I-K of Fig. l, and symmetrical with relation thereto, so that the face of the counter will appear the same whichever side may be up, with the exception of certain marks for indicating theiopposing parties to the game to which the scores upoh the respective sides relate, and also with the exception of certain means for returning the counter disks to their zero positions, as will be hereinafter-noted. Substantially however, the two faces of the device are of the same appearance. in the center of the casing is secured a pintle E and upon each side of the partition a -trick score disk I" is mountedto turn upon'the guide plate G, which is secured to the pintle, an honor scoring and ti-ick" totalizing disk H adapted to turn upon a shoulder of the pintle, as shown, and net gain disk 1 also supported by a shoulder upon the pintle Also upon each side of the partition is a wheel K adapted to be engaged by the trick disk and to record the number of revolutions thereof. Also upon each side of the partition is a lever L, also adapted to be engaged by the trick disk to record the number of games and also upon each side of the partition is a wheel \i adapted to he engaged by the net gain" disk to record the number of its revolutions in one direction.

As the parts and their relations to eachother are exactlythe same in the apparatus on each side of the disk, a description of one of the apparatus will apply to each.

The trick disk is provided with a series of-perforations which register with an aroshaped slot 2 in the cover plate. Beside the perforations are plaeed numerals adapted to pass under a slot .3 in the cover plate. On the same radii on which the centers of the perforations in the trick plate-are located. are also situated numerals upon the cover plate adjacent to the slot 2. The numbers which are thus located upon the trick disk and'upon the cover plate are those which represent points possible to he scored in the game of bridge .It will be obvious thatother notation might be used for other games. The manner of scoring trick points will now be obvious. It being assumed that the trick disk has been adjusted so that Oshows through perforations .l, adjacent'to the numeral 10 and againmoved in a clockwise direction to the end of the slot 2. The number 22'will then appear in the slot 3, this being the sum of the trick points scored.

- To record the number of games played, a lug 4 isprovided upon the trick disk which is adapted to engage with the end of the lever 5 as the number 30 upon the trick disk passes the slot 3. At one end, the lever 5 carrieu a segment 6 upon which are formed the figures O and ladapted to pass beneath the slot 7 in the 'cover plate. The lever 5 being set by means ofthe thumb' screw 8 upon its supporting pivot rotatably 55 mounted in the cover plate, so that 0 appears at the slot 7, when 30 or more points (which constitute a giune) have been scored, the lever Swill be shifted by the dog 4, so that the numeral 1 upon a segment 6 is exposed to view. It is only necessary in bridge" to score up one game for a side as "when-another is won, tlte rubber is won.

The honor" and totalizing disk is provided with two sets of perforations 9 and 1th The perforations 9 are beneath and adapted to register with the pert] ti tions 1 in the trick disk. Each ot' the I pc in t ions lt) rations 10 is an aroshaped slot it in the cover plate, I

the slots? and ll being concentricand terminating in the same radial lines, each of said lines being tangent to two perforations S) and 10. Adjacent to the slot l1 and corresponding with theperforations 10 are engrossed numerals which designate these perforations in a manner similar to that in which the perforations in the trick plate are designated. a numeral design-at ing a perforation it) being located on the same radial I line with the same numeral designating aperforation l. i The numerals upon the disk H adjacent to the'perforations it) are adapted to pass beneath a slot 12 in the cover plate. It will now be obvious that if the plate H be set so that 0 shows through the slot 12, that if any.

trick points are scored as before described, the stylus will extend through the perforation of the trick plate into its registering: perforation in the plate H and i both plates will he moved through the same angle. if therefore 12 "trick points are scored as before described. not only will this n .meral appear at the slot 3. but it will also appear at: the slot l2, and in a similar manner it 10 more trick points he scored, the numeral 22 will appear at each of the slots 3 and 12. If now it be desired to score "honor" points, the stylus is inserted in one of the perforations 10, say that opposite the numeral l2 of the cover plate, and moved in a clockwise direction to the end of the slot ll. In this case, the trick disk will not be moved but the d sk H or honor disk will be moved so that the number "34 will appear at the slot 12, the number at the slot 3 ret 'mannngr unchanged, It. will now appear that we have (in this case-93%) and therefore a lug 13 is secured to the 116 disk H and adapted to engage with the wheel K to turn the wheel through a space as 0 passes under the slot 12 after each revolution. Upon the wheel K are consecutive numerals so spaced that they are successively brought; under the slot- ]4 in the cover plate as the wheel K is successively moved by the lug 13 at the ends of'the revolutions of thehonor.disk. Inother words, the numeralappearing at the slot l4- indicates the number of revolutions of the totalizing disk and since one revolution indicates 100 points, the mineral 120 exhibited at the slot l l indicates the number of hundreds of points. Beneath the totalizing disk ll, istlie net gain disk I having rows of perforations l5 and 16. The perforations l5 register with the perforations 10 of the totalizing disk. while the perforations in, register with the perforations 9 of the totalizing disk and the per forations l of the trick disk. Adjacent to the port" foratitms 15 are unintengrossed upon the net gain disk I, which or gain malt,

' one of the net gain sew-a1 the totalizing disk and which are adapted to pass beneath the slot 17 in the cover ol it will now he ole served that this "net gain disk is sinrplv a second toiel; are scored, and also whenever "honor" points are scored and if no other influences were brought =1o bear upon it than the so and "honor points by one side a total of those points would be exhibited at the slot l7 which total would at all times be equal [0 that exhibited at the T 12 and 14. Other influences however, brought to bean upon the not, gain plate and this is brou ht aboirt by securing tlu gain plates upon W files oi the partition i) together as by rivets 18, It will now be seen that a rnovenu-nt oi will produee an equal moveuee the parts ml the shoring means or one or t oppo 'ng parties upon one side oi the partition l) opposite and syinnu al with re t tion to the seorhig means for the other one oi the opposing parties upon the other side oi thepzu'tition l), a scoring of points by one oi the opposing parties operates to turn his net aizf disk in a diret-tion whi xh would increase their gain shore if they were ahead. The net gain d 01' the otl 1' part s turned in the same direction, but the so r. 1g means of the opposing sides are oppositely though symmetrically arranged, as heiore described, and as the derive is now up side down with regard to the party a" toring, the net gain disk oi the por not bY'UllUg WE be turned in a direction 0 p posite to that n which it is tm'ned when the last; mention d par h' 'ng and therel n'e ment to the oth r and gain" 7 Of course out one party tan b showing is made at the slot 4 hind.

oi the party who is be ihis is accomplished iy means as will be now o la pivned upon the "not gain dis to turn i re whee through one hen eath tl provided it no of the t) \n nrei. Jdir, non Theda,

a extending into a ho shaped all;

net gain diit will now appear that, it the wheel 11 is moved in bhtl. direetion as lo more the 0 numeral upon it out oi night and to expose a blank portion, the end oi the slot 2] will be passed and the wheel M will he interposed between the numerals upon the net gain dish and the slot 17, so that there will be a blank reading when this is the (use upon one side, it indir'ates that the net gain is in iavor ol' the party scoring upon the opposite side and the amount oi this gain will appear in the slot 17 upon that side li one side has a net gain showing, he scoring by the opposite side will turn the net gain dist: of the party ahead in such direetion that the total indicated will be reduced by the point red on the other side and when the opposite side ieh have in-e cored by the side showing the net gain I 0 hulications will be exhibited in the slot 17 on both sides of the counter. ii now the party previously be rind scores more points than the party '4 favor of which a net gain W- previously reeorded, the Wheel M upon the side upon which the lP'tlBl is scoring will eause a blank indication to given it the slot 17 upon their side, While the previo y losing party will have showing the number of an indication at the l7 points u'hi v have been scored in excess of those scored by their opponents As the different sides score their trick or honer points, the wo net gain disks will he turned ba k and forth, the dit'ferenee in total Yes or "net gain being exhibited on one side at the a is exhibited, and these conditions are reversed according as the blank of points scored is reversed.

is neeussury that the apparatus should be set to indicate 0 at all. the reading apertures when a rubber' i I neeessary that the diiierent disks and particularly the 'ek dish should be capable; of being turned to plate lo oi the i n the 1 and the pin are in on Wheel Kv will show at the wident that if the Wheel K th of a wheel R, that the 12 of the cover thus The net gain sh om too o the net gain At this point itmay be fire totalizing disks the pintle and the scored surl'reient points to equal those 80 hile at the eorrespoiuling slot on the other side iegun, and for P41350115 hereinbet'ore referred to.

plate may be Corn v scoring honors 1 25 are also in a line 

